Outlaws Yacht Club

Outlaws Yacht Club: so of the zeitgeist that it aches. Sharing a partitioned room with rock ’n’ roll hairdressers Rebel Pin-Up, and decked out with reclaimed furniture and abstract art, this bar and café has found its niche within an unforgiving location in Leeds. The venue is neighboured by the outdoor market, run-down shops, and the bus station, but still manages to exude an air of east London cool – albeit in a highly engineered way. Mismatched chairs and tableware, bare metal pipes on the ceiling and a stark bar presentation may give the impression that Outlaws’ owners have spent more time on the style than the sustenance on offer, but behind the bar is a thoughtfully selected array of beers, a wide range of lunchtime sandwiches and nibbles, and a tempting choice of enormous layer cakes hiding under bell jars.

This self-described hangout offers a popular lunch option for those working in a woefully uncool area of the city centre, and becomes a lively watering hole at night. Scotch eggs, pork pies and beef brisket aren’t exactly news to the fashionable school of bar snackery, but Outlaws makes sure that these hipster-joint staples are done well and in generous portions.

If you’re over 30, you might feel a little out of place at Outlaws, and there are plenty of other eateries in the city that offer a similar experience in a less image-conscious way. However, when it’s so busy that the windows steam up on a chilly Friday night, and the sound of good music drifts out, the call is almost too much to resist.